What If
by fortheloveofawerewolf
Summary: This is a ramble wondering what would have happened if Katniss's father hadn't died, and Peeta had talked to Katniss before the reaping. Somewhat canon but mostly au. Mentions of child abuse.
1. Bruises and escape

Peeta slipped in through my open window, slumping down onto my bed and waking me up.  
"You okay?" I ask him, taking his hand gently. He only comes when his mother beats him, and I'm not talking hitting him with a wooden spoon on the backside or across the knuckles. I'm talking hardcore beating him across the face with a rolling pin or hitting him with a birch switch on his back.  
His sobs are the only answer I get. I crawl up to him, gently wrapping my arms around him. Peeta never cries. He comes here to avoid her, he comes so he doesn't have to sleep in his own bed to wake up to a crack across the temple. But he never comes here to cry. His tears bring forth my own.  
"I'm-I'm sorry, Katniss." He manages. I silence him with a kiss on his cheek.  
"Don't blame yourself. It's not your fault."  
"I burned some bread." He tells me.  
"That happens sometimes."  
"She doesn't know that." My sorrow turns to seething rage.  
"Where?" I demand, unbuttoning his shirt to give myself a better view.  
"Rolling pin to my face, belt to my back." He says tiredly, so used to relating his injuries in a way no 16 year old should be. I lay him down on his stomach, lighting a candle to see if I can do anything for him. First his face, which isn't too bad considering some that he's showed up with. But I gasp when I see his back. Ugly red welts with deep purple bruising underneath.  
"Peeta..." I cry as a tear hits his skin. I lay next to him, knowing what he needs most in these moments is gestures of love, whether or not I actually say the words. He wraps his arm around me, and I kiss his bruised face, careful to not apply pressure to the sensitive area.  
"I'll get a cream to help the swelling go down." I tell him, not giving him a chance to discourage me. This is sort of our routine, he comes and he tells me what happened. I hug him and get a remedy from my mother's stash in the next room. My father caught us lying closely in bed once, and after lighting a candle and seeing the angry skin covering Peeta's chest, told us to be good and left us alone. He and I get along much better than my mother and I. She has never seen Peeta here, and my father never told her. Prim found him once, telling him how much the Everdeens care about him and disappearing with tears in her eyes to leave him in my care. Everyone in D-12 knows Peeta has been in love with me for years, and I had been taken in by his sweet charm and gentle nature. The first time I took care of him was after he'd run from his own home, coming to my house for lack of a better place to go. He'd settled himself beneath my window, intent on waiting for me to wake up in the morning, but his heavy footsteps had roused me and I'd looked out to see what made them. Upon finding him, I drew him up and inside my room, just hugging him until he stopped shaking.  
I returned with a tube of ointment, finding Peeta in the exact same position I'd left him in. I started applying the medicine to his back, gently to avoid hurting him. He moaned a couple times when I'd gone over a couple particularly bad ones.  
"That feels better, thank you." I shook my head, although I knew he couldn't see it. He always thanks me, no matter if I give him medicine or not. He thanks me for letting him in. He thanks me for letting him stay, he thanks me for hugging him. Because he doesn't think he deserves it. I let the cream soak into his flesh as I extinguish the candle and toss the tube under my bed so I can put it away tomorrow before my mother misses it.  
Then I curl up with Peeta and do something I've never done before.  
I kiss his lips.  
Just for a second. Just a tiny little kiss. But his eyes are open wide and he looks at me questioningly. His eyes are filled with love and something else - hope maybe?  
"I love you Katniss." He tells me as he's said dozens of times before. It helps him to hear the words, to know I'm here with him. I nestle myself closer, pressing my lips to his throat before settling in to sleep. When I finally hear his breathing even out, I whisper back, "I think I love you too." It could be my imagination, but I believe I felt his heartbeat quicken, and his sigh into my hair. It's probably hearing the words in his subconscious. Hearing the words nobody has ever told him before.  
I wake up the next morning with Peeta's heavy arm draped across my back. His breathing tells me he's awake. I roll over to look at his face, to make sure he feels better.  
"Good morning." I whisper.  
"Yes, it is." He says back, beaming down on me. I frown.  
"You okay?"  
He nods. He's a whole lot happier than he usually is when he wakes up beside me. Maybe it's because I kissed him. I lean up to do it again, knowing he liked it. This time a little longer, showing him how much I care about him. When I pull back, he's smiling again.  
"I love you." He says. Then it clicks, why he's so much more happy than usual.  
"You were awake." I accused. He grins without an ounce of shame and nods.  
"Will you say it again, please?" He beseeches me. "Just once?" I smile, unable to deny him. If there was any doubt last night, it had evaporated in the light of day. "I love you, Peeta." Tears come to his eyes.  
"You've never heard that, have you?" I ask gently. The tears spill down his cheeks as he shakes his head. His lips keep twitching up and down, as if he doesn't know if he should be joyful or heartbroken that it took this long for someone to love him. I stand, knowing my father will be up soon, shove my feet into my boots and watch as Peeta does the same. He pulls his shirt back on and we disappear out the window. This isn't unusual for me to leave before my father wakes. He won't know if Peeta was here or not. I draw him through the meadow towards the gaps in the fence, where he pauses.  
"Are you okay?"  
"Yeah. I'll follow you anywhere." He tells me, stepping through behind me. We walk rapidly towards the lake. He's never been outside the district lines, he has no idea where I'm leading him. But he follows me anyway, because he trusts me with his life. We finally get there and despite the natural beauty around us, Peeta's eyes focus on my face.  
"You've never heard someone tell you they love you." I say again.  
"No, never. Unless my dad... Before he died." Peeta was 2 or 3 when his father died in the terrible sickness that went through our district.  
"I-I..." I am at a loss for words, so I wrap my arms gently around him instead. We stayed that way for such a long time, just holding each other, listening to the birds singing, feeling the sun warm our shoulders and heads.  
I finally speak.  
"We could leave."  
He pulls away to look at me cautiously.  
"It's okay, you can say anything out here." I assure him. "You and me. We could leave the district. We both have three years left for the Games. I have more slips in there than I can count."  
He nods.  
"I don't know how many will say my name this year either." I frown, quickly calculating in my head. 12,13,14,15,16. Five slips. One for each year.  
"Wouldn't you have five?" I ask, confused.  
He shook his head.  
"I've taken plenty of tesserae myself. My mother's way of ensuring I have just as much chance of getting reaped as anyone in the seam. And she gets a profit from it, too." I gape at him.  
"Peet-Peeta-" he shakes his head again.  
"It's okay. You love me. That's what matters now."  
I sputter for a few more seconds before a question pops into my mind and I ask it without really thinking.  
"How did you survive before? Why did you wake up every day and live pretending everything was okay?"  
"Why did I not kill myself a long time ago?" I nod, realizing how rude the question was.  
"I'm a hopeful person. I guess I was hoping I could get the love of a certain girl to keep me going eventually." I squeeze my eyes shut, tears leaking down my face.  
"We're leaving District 12." I tell him. "Your family will be fine running the bakery, mine will survive without me. Dad will be able to take even better care of them with one less mouth to feed. And they won't risk trouble for my poaching." He smiles at me.  
"You would run away, for me? To help me?" I smile back, pecking his lips.  
"I love you, why wouldn't I?"

We formulate a plan. We'll go back as if nothing happened. Act normally. Then when night is falling, we'll meet at the meadow. I'll have arranged a "wild dog attack," making it look like we were attacked and killed, dragged off by the dogs. If we make it look convincing enough, the absence of two children, one a seam, the other the youngest of the merchant family who doesn't want him, will not trouble the peacekeepers. I'll make sure to bring a few basic medicines for patching us up against whatever might meet us in the open woods. I put on my mother's silver locket, in case we meet someone and need to barter for anything. He'll smuggle some bread to keep us going, and two flasks filled with water until we reach the lake. We'll rest when we get to the concrete house deep in the heart of the forest. Even if the peacekeepers do care enough to search the woods, that's a long hike, and it would take nearly the whole day to reach us. Which, by the time the realize we're gone, we'll have left that area.  
The plan seems as solid as it could get.  
That evening, once my sister and mother are occupied with her schooling in the next room, I silently pack up my belongings, stuffing a burlap bag with my spare set of clothes, wearing my jacket, and wrapping the three medicine bottles up in my spare shirt. I leave a note on my bed, after rolling up my blanket to take that as well.  
Safe. Burn this. K  
Vague enough that the peacekeepers will disregard it if they manage to read it. With enough information that my family will not report me missing. Once Peeta is discovered missing, they'll know all they need to.  
At dusk, I crawl through my window, barely missing my father as he opened my door. I hit the dirt, squirming away from sight.  
"Katniss?" He says softly. The rustle of paper tells me he's seen my note. The ripping noise and gulp of water tells me nobody else will read it. He leans out the window. "Goodbye. You've made your father proud." He tells me. I don't move, a silent tear leaking out of my eye when he didn't wait for a response. He knows I'm here. He knows I don't intend to wait. He knows I'm leaving for Peeta. He's proud.  
When I'm sure nobody will observe me, I dart towards the meadow, catching sight of Peeta's form waiting, hunched in the grass. Nobody else would have noticed, only me, since I was looking for him. He has his blanket from his bed, and a sack which I assume holds break, the water and clothes.  
"Ready?" I say almost silently. He stands, nodding. He's scared. I don't blame him, I am too. We slip through the fence and into the woods. Our dog scene has us convinced, and with my father's cooperation, the peacekeepers will accept it. There's enough blood for two people to have lost the fight. We reach the tree where I conceal my bow, and I grab it and all the arrows, wrapping the oilcloth up and shoving it into my bag. We continue on quietly, Peeta's heavy footfalls being the only sound. It scared off the animals so we could have no fear of attack. I didn't mention it.  
By the first streaks of morning light, we had reached the concrete house, fatigued from not sleeping the whole night, and weary from the endless walking.  
"Should we catch a few hours' sleep here?" He suggests. I ponder this. We're nearly exhausted, Peeta could probably drop any minute, not used to the terrain and spending yesterday working hard in the bakery.  
"We'll rest. You sleep, I'll keep an ear out in case we need to run."  
"Katniss, you need sleep too. I won't sleep until you've rested a little." I shook my head.  
"I'm fine. I'll sing to you, just take an hour to rest and then we'll switch." Without giving him a chance to argue, I croon a lullaby softly. Peeta smiles. He loves my voice, he's always said that's what drew him to me in the first place. He rests his head on my lap, and I cover us with our blankets. He drops asleep right away. I smile and continue to sing, watching him sleep content and almost free.  
When the song is over, I fall quiet, listening intently for any unnatural sounds. Peeta's quiet breathing calm my nerves, and I rest without actually sleeping. About an hour and a half later, I wake him up, having let him sleep as long as I dared.  
"Sleep for awhile, Kat. We walked fast for so long, they won't be able to even get here that quickly, if they're even coming." I concur, too tired to protest. We swap positions, so that I'm laying on his lap and he's sitting against the wall. His fingers find their way into my hair, gently undoing the braid and untangling the strands. I fall asleep quickly.  
It must be forty-five minutes when Peeta shakes me awake.  
"Katniss, wake up!" I sit up straight, arming myself with my bow.  
"What?" I whisper.  
"There was something howling just outside." He says quietly. We hear a low whine, and Peeta's hand grips my leg tightly. I realize he's never seen a live wild animal. He's afraid of them.  
"I'll shoot it for our dinner." I tell him, careful to leave my voice somewhere between confident of our safety and understanding his fear.  
"Be careful, I know you hunt, but it still... Terrifies me." He admits sheepishly.  
"They used to scare me too, but I got used to it, having a hunter with me to protect me if they were a problem." I assure him. He nods, releasing me and watching me timidly as I go outside.  
"Stay here." I tell him, although I don't really think he'll follow me. I track the wild dog, shoot it through the eye and drag it back to clean it. Wild dog isn't the best meat, but it's hearty and will keep us going.  
"We'll have to cook this when it gets dark, we can't risk a fire now." I tell him, snapping my fingers as I recall, "I forgot to get a flint from the Hob."  
He grins. "I work in a bakery with ovens. I can start a fire without a flint." I smile back, knowing he likes being useful.  
"Excellent. Do you have anything to eat with you?"  
He rummages through his bag, pulling out a round, hearty looking loaf of raisin nut bread. I smile softly.  
"That's the bread you gave me when my dad was injured."  
He looks back at me.  
"You remember that? We were 8."  
"Yeah, I do. That's when I first really noticed you, you saved my whole family by yourself. That's when I went back into the meadow to catch small animals and gather herbs and edible plants. Like my dad taught me. I hadn't learned to hunt yet." He looked shyly at me.  
"I think that's a little bit of an exaggeration. All four of you would not have died without me."  
I nod vigorously.  
"It's true. The bread fed us for two days and you gave me courage to get food myself." Color rose in his cheeks.  
"Your mother is wrong, Peeta. I hope you know that." He started shaking his head, but I gripped his shoulders, heedless of my dog-bloodied hands. "She was wrong. You're a very important and useful person. I love you." I don't know what else to say really. He looks like he wants to cry.  
"I'm going to spend every minute for the rest of my life showing you how wonderful I think you are." If he wanted to cry before, he simply can't help himself now, and a steady stream of tears wash down his face as I hold him close. Neither of us moves for awhile, until his sniffles cease and I think he's pulled himself together a little.  
"I swear, I've cried more in the last couple of days than I have in the last couple of years." He laughs quietly.  
"It's okay, don't feel bad about crying. It helps sometimes." I tell him, squeezing his hands once more before finishing my work with our dinner.  
"And sorry... About the blood..." I giggle at his now red hands and the red stains on his shirt. He shrugs and laughs as well, watching as I pack away the good meat in my oilcloth and bury the rest to hide evidence of people staying here. We both eat some bread and drink a little water, stopping by the lake on our way away from D-12. We wash up a little, drinking as much as we could and refilling our flasks, not knowing when we'd find water again.  
"Where are we going?" He finally asked me.  
"Away." Is all I can tell him. He nods, accepting my answer. We won't know until we get there. We missed the reaping by about a month, and the rain season will be several weeks after that. After that is snow season, which will definitely be hard. We will need some kind of shelter and steady food and water source. But that's about two months away, and if we keep our current pace, we could get out of Panem before that. I think back to the maps they show us in school. They never said what was beyond the Panem border. Was it more land? Or water, like in D-4? Or was it the end of the planet?  
"We'll keep going for awhile until we're several days away, then we can start looking for a place to settle down for the rain and snow. We'll need some kind of house, plus fresh water and food." I explain. He nods.  
"And we need to get out of the open, so a hovercraft doesn't find us." I say casually, not wanting to scare him, but also make sure he knows what might happen.  
"Hovercraft? Do they do that?" I nod.  
"Like in the arena, when they take the body? Except not as gentle." A shiver rolls down both of our spines as we think of being snatched off the ground by a giant claw.

"We should get moving." I finally tell him. "It would be good to sleep tonight so we can get back on a good schedule. Soon we'll be far enough away that a fire won't be a problem."

We continue our trek away from where we once called home.


	2. AN thank-you

**Hey everyone! I know this isn't a chapter update, (I'm working on it... :P) [and technically illegal on FF to have a chapter just be an A/N] but I want to thank you all for your support. I've gotten several encouraging and super sweet messages from you guys and I'm so grateful. :) I did block Gwindoo, and I reported the comment. I'm not upset at all but it, since it's obviously just a copy-paste response having nothing whatever to do with the story. It actually popped up ten min after I released the first chapter, and if someone can type that much after reading the chapter in 10 min or less, I would actually be impressed. I'm currently writing chapter two, so hopefully that will be up in one or two weeks.  
**

 **I hope you guys stick with the story to see where it goes!**

 **Have a nice day ^.^**

 **~Sonny**

 **P.s., check out my other stories too, I don't know which one I'll be updating next, but I also have a new Twilight fic in the works, should be pretty fun!**


	3. Pushing Forward

**I'm sorry it's been so long, you all have been so patient and supportive of this story! I'm doing NaNoWriMo this month, so I'm working on my original novel. I'll try to get back to updating on Sundays in December though, and definitely get this one moving along. If you haven't already, make sure you read my other HG fics, I'm working on like 37 new ones which honestly I should just sit myself down and get them done... But anyway, enjoy Refugee!Everlark :D**

"Do you hear that?"

"What is it?"

"It sounds like dogs. It's probably the peacekeepers, we need to run!"

"Run where? The dogs will follow our scent!" Peeta reasoned. I looked around, it was nearing dusk, if we could just get high up, the darkness would shield us in the trees.

"Can you climb a tree?"

"I used to climb the apple tree in our yard, but I'm not that good."

"It doesn't matter, just climb the first tree you think you can. Do you trust me?" I held his arm to look into his eyes. We're coming on our second night in the open, and we've had to trust each other completely, otherwise we couldn't work as a unit. He nodded. "Then run until you can climb, then go as high as you can and try to hide yourself. I'll meet you there." We'd taken advantage of the fog this morning to light a fire and cook the meat I'd gotten our first morning, and in hindsight, that might have been what alerted the peacekeepers that we were alive. I rubbed the bottoms of my shoes the last piece of raw wild dog, then ran off as fast as I could in a different direction. I didn't run straight, I made several turns, as if we didn't know where to go. This would take longer for the dogs to follow than a simple straight line. When I had run for 5 minutes, I started getting tired, and decided I'd gone far enough. I climbed a tree quickly, hearing the peacekeepers on my trail, and swung from branch to branch into the next tree. I paused, assessing my surroundings, making sure I was going in the right direction. I kept inching my way closer and closer to where Peeta and I split. It had been close to 15 minutes when I saw two sets of prints on the dirt. I looked around, seeing no white uniforms, so I dropped down and carefully obliterated Peeta's prints until they went under the trees, where they didn't take shape because of the leaves on the ground. I went tree-to-tree in his direction, moving silently so I could hear his location. I'm not sure where the peacekeepers are now, they might not have even gotten to our juncture.

"Katniss!" He hissed from the branches above me. I wasted no time, landing in the tree closest to his and finding him sitting on a limb high above the ground.

"Hey, you're pretty good at this." I smiled at him. He smiled shyly back.

"Where did you go, did you see anyone?" He asked. I shook my head.

"I made a false trail, it'll take them awhile to track it. Are you okay? We could probably rest here for a while. I don't think they'll find us."

"Yeah, I'm definitely feeling the lack of sleep now. I'm just worried I'll fall out." I nodded, taking my belt off and securing it around my leg.

"Use your belt, I've done it before, when I got stuck out at night when they electrified the fence." His eyebrows went up, but he did as I told him to.

"You're sure about all this?" I knew he didn't mean sleeping here, the trick with our belts or being found.

"I'm sure. Anyways, we can't go back now, we'd get flogged, and your mom would... we can't go back now." I told him, using my blanket behind my head. He reached out and I put my hand in his.

"Thanks, Katniss. Thank you." I smiled, leaning out to place my lips on his hand.  
~~~~~~~~

"Katniss?" I dragged my heavy lids open. "Good morning, beautiful." I smiled at the boy in the tree beside me.

"Hi Peeta, how long have you been awake?" I couldn't help but think how angelic he looked with the sun behind him, making his golden hair glow. I must look funny, squinting into the morning light.

"I woke up a while ago, I went through our packs to see how we're doing provision-wise. I still have some bread, but it's going to get moldy soon. And we really need to finish off that dog." I nodded, rubbing my face while I thought.

"We should focus today on finding water. We're almost out, and we could both stand to bathe." We both laughed, knowing how bad we smell. We rolled up our blankets and stuffed them back into our backpacks, refastened our belts around our waists, and climbed down to scope out our surroundings. I want to head north, away from the districts, so I used the sun to determine our path.

"If we find water, we can stay there and rest tonight. I'll shoot something on our way." I told him, making sure my boots were tied well. He nodded, offering me a flask of water before we started out.

"We can eat breakfast once we get away from here, I don't know if the peacekeepers went back into 12, but I haven't heard anything since I woke up. It was probably around 4, that's when I would usually get up to start the bread." I nodded, taking this into consideration for our direction.

"If we head north, we might be able to get far enough away from Panem that they won't be able to find us ever. I wonder if anyone else would be around here." I mused.

"It's hard to tell if a disappearance is someone running away or just quietly being taken care of by the Capitol." We walked for about half an hour before stopping to eat. We were both tired and quiet, getting only a few hours of sleep at night and trekking all throughout the day. But we clung to the hope of finding freedom soon, and being able to rest all we want there.

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	4. Safe at last

I'm finally back with the next update to this story! I was considering how to work in our other faves *cough*Finnick*cough* but then I decided to keep this one more canon, as I had originally planned it to be. So probs no Rue or Thresh :( I don't know if they will meet other people, I just know they won't meet people who have other canon things to attend to. I hope that makes sense and you all enjoy this chapter!

"Did you see that?" Peeta asked, grabbing my arm and pointing to a shadowy patch of dark moss.

"No, what was it?" I squint towards where he pointed.

"It was a lizard or something."

A lizard.

"That's great! That means there must be water around here!" I let go of his hand and scale the nearest tree, looking for a river or lake.

"Did you find it?" He asked when I came back down.

"Yeah, there was a river that way, it looked like only a couple miles. We should be able to get there by nightfall." I took his hand again and we altered our course to meet the water. We both walked a little faster in our excitement to get to there. The effects of dehydration were starting to show; we had run out of water last night.

"I wonder what they're doing back home." Peeta wondered aloud. I looked at his face, surprised to see the wistful expression there.

"Do you miss it?"

He shook his head.

"I miss my brothers, but that's it. But they're both aged out of the reaping." I nod.

"I miss Dad. He came into my room right after I went out the window, and he saw the note I left. He knows where we are and why we left."

"And he let you leave?"

"He told me he was proud of me." I whisper. My eyes filled with tears but I blinked them away before they fell. Peeta was quiet and I let the silence hang in the air for a few more seconds.

"He knows I love you, and he loves us both. He knew you loved me a long time ago." I told him.

"How did he know?"

"He probably saw how you always looked to see if I was with him when he went to trade with your dad." I say, smiling in memory of little Peeta poking his head around the corner of the wall behind the back door of Mellark's. Peeta chuckled.

"I thought I was very discreet back then."

"You were very cute either way." I tell him, seeing his blush in my peripheral vision. I squeeze his hand.

We walked on in silence again, only the sound of leaves crinkling under our feet. Birds flew overheard, screeching and ruffling their wings, and the patter of tiny feet moving away from us filled the air.

"I love you so much, Katniss. More than I knew was possible." Peeta told me softly. I bent down to retie my bootlace, pausing my fingers as I thought of what to say to him.

"I know you do. And I really do love you, Peeta." He kneeled down beside me, lacing up my boot when my distracted fingers only tangled the laces.

"And I can never thank you enough for saving me. More than once." He whispered, staring intently at his busy hands.

"I would be here to save you if you didn't save me first." He started shaking his head, so I reached up, taking his face between my palms and tipped it up. "Look at me, Peeta." His eyes refused to meet mine. "Look at me." I waited until he lifted his gaze to me. "You saved my life. You did more than just give me bread, you gave me hope. You made it so that I had the courage to feed my entire family. I'll never forget that."

"Katniss-" I didn't give him a chance to protest, melding my lips to his and keeping them there so that he wouldn't argue. I only meant to quiet him, but I felt something warm stirring in me that I didn't expect. I wasn't sure what to do, or if he felt it too, so I gently pulled away. I looked in his eyes, noting how they had gotten darker than I've ever seen them. I stroked his cheek and his eyes closed for a few seconds. A blush rose to his cheeks and stayed there as I leaned forward again and kissed his cheekbone. He inhaled deeply before his eyes opened again, not meeting mine. He cleared his throat before saying,

"We should probably keep moving." I stood first, and he followed closely behind me, muttering something under his breath. I turned to see what he was talking about, and he flushed brighter, smiling at me.

"Is something wrong?" I asked, reaching my hand out to take his again. He shook his head, his big warm hand closing around mine once more.

It didn't take more than a few hours to come to the river I'd seen, and we'd stepped over more than a few tiny trickles of water on the way. When we got there, we both tossed out backpacks to the ground and ran the last few steps, exhausted and thirsty. I cupped my hands, scooping up water to drink and then splashing some on my face. We drank until we couldn't anymore, and flopped down on the bank, side by side.

"We made it." He whispered. I grinned.

"We can survive out here. We escaped."

I know I know! She left Prim! She didn't say she missed Prim! But I don't think she would have been so protective of Prim if she hadn't had to take care of her all those years. That was her dad's job still. Katniss focused her energy on Peeta, and protecting him. She sacrificed everything to save Prim in THG, and here she sacrificed everything to save Peeta since she took it as her role to protect him. At that time, Prim was still very much her mother's child, since Mrs. Everdeen was in full capacity at the time. (Mr. Everdeen hadn't died) So Katniss is going to do her darndest to make sure Peeta is safe and well. Ya feel me?

I hope you liked this one! I don't know if I'm going to do more chapters, at this point I could leave them here and end the story, or I could do more about them surviving the winter.. Drop me a review to let me know!


	5. District 13

**I couldn't let these two go! I thought of a few more things I want to see them do before I leave them to their own devices...**  
bjbkj  
Peeta and I woke up with the sound of hushed voices a few feet away. I leaped to my feet, grabbing for my bow. Peeta grabbed my arm, keeping me from shooting at the people that watched us cautiously.  
"What are you doing?" I hissed. Our visitors were clearly armed.  
"They aren't peacekeepers." He whispered, his eyes roving over them carefully.  
"Who are you?" I demanded. "What district are you from?" They wore gray, all looking similar to me, but what I noticed was their amber-colored skin paired with nearly black eyes and hair.  
"We're not going to hurt you, if you don't attack us. We'd like to talk first." The woman said. Her two companions nodded, lowering their weapons.  
"What do you want?" Peeta asked.  
"Are you refugees from District 12?" The smaller man asked.  
"Are you from District 12 or the Capitol?" Peeta countered, and I scowled at them quietly, not really knowing what to divulge or how to respond.  
"Neither."  
"Then yes, we are District 12. We left a couple days ago."  
"We're from District 13, scouts. District 13 moved underground after the bombings, the Capitol lied when they said we all died."  
I can tell Peeta is still suspicious, and I can't say that I believe their story.  
"Prove it."  
The woman gave her gun to the larger man, stepping closer with her hands raised. I kept my bow in my hand but didn't draw an arrow.  
"In 13, we stick to very strict schedules, and right now, since it's 6:47," she confirmed by showing me a watch hanging from her neck, "we three have 'scouting' on our schedules." She pulled up her sleeve, showing me white ink on her arm, detailing her duties for the day. Sure enough, scouting was in this time slot. I looked at Peeta, to see if he thought it was enough. He didn't.  
"Yeah, you have schedules, but how does that prove D13 is still around?"  
"Here, you can see our map of this area and the bunker on our holo." She pulled out a small square block of metal, poking it a few times before it projected an image, which she showed them.  
"This area is District 12, I assume you know the general layout, with the coal miners, the merchant area and the Victors Village." Peeta nods and she continues. "And here's where we are now, and here's District 13." She opened another setting. "This is the underground intelligence center, and here's our medical ward. Here are our hovercrafts and our weaponry. Does that prove it to you?" I have to say that I'm convinced, this would be a pretty involved lie to construct just to gain the trust of two kids from 12. I nod.  
"Well, since you're here, and you obviously don't have much in the way of protection from anything stronger than animals or unarmed people," I scowled, this woman is making it very hard to like her, "Why don't you come back with us. We have plenty of refugees that have escaped to District 13, which is free from the Capitol." I look at Peeta to see what he thinks.  
"What would we do there? Or I guess the bigger question is, how permanent are we talking?"  
"You'd be welcomed into the system, our organizers would set you up in compartments with roommates, and given schedules like this with tasks to keep yourselves busy."  
"Roommates?" I echo at the same time that Peeta puts his arm around my waist.  
"Yes, we don't allow unmarried minors of the opposite sex to share a room. Period, no exceptions." My jaw loosens as I try to find a convincing argument.  
"Oh, well we're already married. Not legally, of course, our justice building doesn't allow minors to be married, but we've been together for about a year and a half, and we followed our District's toasting ceremony." Peeta explains. I try to keep my shock off my features. He gives me a squeeze and I tuck my hand into his resting on my hip. That was a smoothly delivered lie, and we're just waiting to see if this woman buys it.  
"Married? How old are you?"  
"I'm 18 and she turned 17 two months ago." He smiles. Another perfectly executed line, we're both barely 16.  
"Hm, I can't say for sure, you would need to provide some proof, but obviously you don't have anyone to vouch for you and you don't have any documentation, so it's really up to our administrators. I can't promise you anything."  
"I'll talk to them when we get there. I don't think it will be a problem. But Katniss and I will share a compartment." He says with finality, exuding a confidence I can't say I have.

"We'll have to see, I can't make any promises." She repeats. I hook my bow over my shoulder and start packing up my few things, making sure I refill our water bottles as Peeta does the same.

"Let's get moving then." I say crossly, not particularly excited to move right into what appears to be a very rigid "system" as she called it. I guess we don't have much choice, though.

"What are your names?"

"Peeta and Katniss Mellark," Peeta tells them, and I don't think I imagine the pride in his voice as he puts his last name with mine. When they turn to lead the way, I give him a small smile to let him know I think he was brilliant. He smiles back and reaches his hand out to me. We walk hand-in-hand behind our escorts for several hours, stopping briefly to scarf down our lunch and rest our feet. I keep my bow in my free hand the whole time, ready to fire at a moment's notice. I'm not sure if I am more wary of wild animals or the scouts from District 13.  
~~~

"Stand back, this swings outward." The larger man helps her to open a gigantic metal door that is camouflaged on the outside to blend in with the ground.

"There's about a mile of tunnel, then we'll get to the main hall where we can get you situated." We follow them inside, and Peeta jumps when the door makes a heavy crash behind us. We trudge on through the mostly dark tunnel, lit only with the map which they had referred to as a holo. I haven't seen something so small project that large of an image, only the Mayor has something similar in place of a screen to watch the Games and the news. I've only been in his house twice, when my mother had to take care of Mrs. Undersee and brought me along, since Prim was still to young to help back then. We took many turns, and I tried to keep track of them in case we ever had to leave and find our way out. I was doing pretty well until the short man started telling stories about the history of 13, after all of Panem thought it had been wiped out. I let Peeta deal with responding for the both of us and tried to block out his voice.

"We had a huge fever that killed the majority of the people, but that was several years ago and we've recovered for the most part. Of course, new citizens are always welcome here." I frowned. A fever would be trapped inside, since the entire District was underground. They would be difficult to introduce to the environment, but practically impossible to avoid once they got in.

"How did you control it?" I found myself wondering aloud.

"Quarantine, for the most part. We have a medical ward that's completely closed off from the rest of the air vents, water system and food supply. That way if we caught a few people sick, we can get them in there before it spreads too far. Medical staff wear protection, but unfortunately, we still lost a great deal of them in the first wave." He explained. I nodded, going back to memorizing our route. Apparently, not even the scouts had it memorized, as the woman kept referring to her map to keep us on the right course. I tried to not let that bother me.

"We're here," she said, punching a code that I couldn't see into a keypad for the door that slid open. I glanced back as we passed through, relieved that it didn't have a code going out. I wonder if they have guards to keep people in or if they're mainly concerned about an unknown and unwelcome visitor from the Capitol.

"Lan, we have a couple more from 12." With that, we were turned over to the welcoming officials who interrogated us on the validity of our marriage, our ages, health and skills.

"We got married by our district's standards, that's as official as you need," argued Peeta. The officials were unconvinced.

"You are both very young. 17 and 18, if you're telling the truth about that. We're going to assign you separate compartments." Peeta and I looked at each other, and his face held defeat. I'd remained mostly silent during our plea, and now jutted my chin out defiantly.

"No. I will not live apart from my husband. We have been married by 12's customs for over a year and there is no reason for you to keep us separate."

"Miss-"

"Mrs. Mellark." I correct him. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Peeta's mask of defiance, although he's probably a little surprised that I'm so determined to live with him.

"Mrs. Mellark," He amended dubiously, "I'll have to check with my superior, but if you are so determined to live with this young man, I personally see no reason to doubt your claim." He puts his clipboard down on the table and leaves the room to check. I look over at Peeta, somewhat triumphantly. His eyes are wide and his jaw is slack. My eyes dart to the door to make sure nobody is watching.

"Wow." Is all he says, and I give a nervous laugh.

"What, you thought I'd share you with a stranger?" I ask him quietly, taking his hand again.

"I-I guess I'm just surprised you want to live with me that much." He says quietly, seriously. I frown.

"Of course I do, I ran away with you, didn't I?"

He shakes his head, a disbelieving laugh falling from his lips.

"How did I manage to make you fall in love with me? Yeah, I know you ran away to save me, but now that we're in relative safety, I didn't know if you would want to stay with me, when it would be easier to just settle into 13 as teenagers."

"I will always stay with you, Peeta, I love you and I'm not planning on letting you go." I tilt my face up to his, meeting his eyes and smiling. He lets a huge smile of his own cover his features.

"But-" he warns, "We've been married for awhile, so we need to do married-couple-things to make sure people believe us." I raise my eyebrows.

"Married-couple-things?"

"Mhm, like this," He lifts my fingers to his face, kissing each knuckle, "or this," he scoots closer to me on the bench we're sitting on, wrapping his arm around me securely. I rest my head on his shoulder, letting myself meld to him. "There you go," he chuckles, stroking the back of my hand with his thumb. We're sitting quietly like this when the man comes back, with a smile on his face.

"I got permission for you to share a compartment, and here's your key." He holds up a silver key and an envelope with a number written across the top.

"Thank you, we really appreciate it." Peeta says, and I smile to show him I am grateful as well. Peeta takes the key and grins down at me as he drops it into my palm. We shoulder our backpacks and leave the small room that we spent so many hours doing paperwork and answering questions in.

"Ask anyone where that number is, it shouldn't be too hard to find," Lan says as he scribbles information into the log on his desk. I nod as we close the door behind us.

"We're in, we escaped, and we're living in District 13. Can you believe it? We won't even have to fear the reaping." Peeta says, holding me close to his side.

"I can't believe it." I breathe, hardly able to wrap my mind around it. "We've escaped the reaping, the Capitol, the peacekeepers, your mom..." I trail off, squeezing his hand tighter.

"Thank you, Katniss," He suddenly stops walking and turns me toward him, holding my shoulders. "Thank you." He dips his head down and presses his lips to mine firmly, and somehow I can feel how much he loves me through my lips against his, and when he pulls away a moment later, all grin and misty eyes, I still feel a little dizzy. I laugh and tuck myself back into his side and we start looking for our new compartment.


	6. President Coin's District

I sat brushing my hair on the bed. I know I was supposed to be working on something half an hour ago, according to my schedule, but I don't like them always dictating my life. I think one day off after a week and a half's labor is warranted. I heard Peeta shut off the water in the shower. Up till now, we haven't had any problems with sharing the bathroom, and nothing awkward has happened in our room. That abruptly changed when Peeta opened the door wearing only a towel around his waist. He jumped when he saw me, and all I could do was stare. Water droplets still hung on his bare skin, and a few rolled down his shoulders as I followed their movement.

"Katniss! I thought you were working-" I blinked a couple of times before averting my eyes.

"No, I'm sorry, I should have told you that I wasn't going to stick to my schedule today..." I mumbled, irritated with how my cheeks flushed and my ears grew warm. "I can leave now, though." I jumped off the bed and grabbed my boots but Peeta stopped me before I could reach the door.

"Katniss, it's fine, I don't care if you see me." I could hear the smile in his voice.

"I care, okay? I should get going anyway..." I hastily pulled my hair back into a ponytail.

"I was just going to grab my clothes, I'll dress in the bathroom if it makes you uncomfortable." He passed me to grab some things from his drawer, dropping a kiss on my cheek as he went back into the bathroom. "I would think you would be used to it, your mom is a healer after all. Don't you have all kinds of sick naked men at your house?"

I scowled at the closed door, untying my hair to put it into its proper braid.

"I don't usually stick around. I can't stand bad wounds or sick people anyway." I explain.

"Katniss Everdeen - excuse me, Mellark -" he chuckles, somewhat proudly. "Fearsome huntress, afraid of a little pus... I never would have guessed." I rolled my eyes. "You never had a problem taking care of me though," he continued.

"You didn't have open wounds most of the time, it was mainly bruising." I pointed out.

"That's true, I guess. It almost feels like another lifetime, when it was really only a few weeks ago." He opens the door to look at me, still buttoning his shirt and walking towards me. I frown.

"You're right, it was only a few weeks ago." I still his fingers on his buttons, undoing them again to check his back. I'm not sure what he thought I was doing, but based on his blush, it wasn't health-related. "Turn around," I tell him quietly. I push his shirt off his shoulders so it hangs from his elbows as I run my fingers over his skin, pleased with how well it's healing. He shudders a little, and his blush descends his neck so I can just see it on the top of his back. I wrap my arms around his waist, drawing him to me. He rests his hands on top of mine, sighing softly. I put my cheek against his warm skin, breathing in his scent and letting my head rise and fall with his breaths. He will always smell like boy baker to me, musky with a hint of cinnamon. I smile, he smells so _Peeta_. I loosen my arms and put his shirt back onto him, turning him around to re-button it.

"You take such good care of me." He watches me with a smile on his lips. I look up at him, bringing his face down to plant a kiss on his nose.

A few minutes later, when we're both dressed and ready to work, I shove my feet into my boots - which I refuse to swap for the plain gray ones that match the rest of our new clothes - and look at him.

"Do you want to see if they'll let us into the training rooms? A little practice would be good for us both." I suggest.

"Yeah, you could teach me how to shoot or something." He grins. I smile back, although it quickly changes into a frown as I remember that they made me store my bow there.

"I wish I could keep my bow here. It would make me a lot more comfortable."

"I know. Maybe sometime you could smuggle it back in, I don't see a problem hiding it under the bed or something. It's not like you aren't used to keeping secrets."

"Yeah, although they seem to be keeping an eye on us since we're new." He nods. We've been caught twice trying to take food back to our room with us. It's so much against our nature to rely completely on having our food provided every meal.

"I hate it here." I admit. Peeta looks at me carefully.

"So do I. It's more strict than 12."

"I memorized the turns we took through the tunnel in, so if we ever needed to leave..." I trail off.

"Maybe you should write it down, in case you forget later." He suggests, taking the pen from his breast pocket and digging through our table drawer for a piece of paper. He hands both to me and I get to work scribbling down the way we came.

"We just reverse these, and we can find our way out again." I tell him absently as I finish. I look up when I'm done. Peeta's mouth is open as he looks at my map.

"What?" I frown.

"How did you remember all that?"

"I've been hunting in the woods for years, how do you think I find my way back to the fence?" I explain, and he shakes his head, still surprised. "What, don't you remember recipes and stuff?"

"Yeah, but I do those over and over before I can remember them perfectly. Besides, that one guy kept talking, I don't know how you concentrated."

"I ignored him, mostly. I figured you would do all the talking they would expect from us." I said, sheepishly. He laughed.

"Well I don't think they would guess that you were memorizing the path to freedom. They don't even have it down, they used that map thing."

"I know, I wonder how often they use that tunnel." I folded up my map and tucked it into the lining of the jacket that my dad gave me when I started hunting regularly with him. I gave Peeta back his pen and we headed down the hall to find the training rooms.


	7. Living in D-13

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Mellark, I can't allow you in here unless it's on your schedule for this time-slot or you have a pass from Boggs or President Coin. We already are full with the citizens who are scheduled." The man told me. I huffed in frustration.

"You can't squeeze in two people? I'm never scheduled to train since I'm not a soldier. I just want to practice with my bow so I don't get rusty." I argue.

"You'll have to take that up with the scheduling department, that's not my responsibility, please step aside." He says coldly.

"Katniss, maybe you could get on the scout team, you know the woods really well." Peeta told me soothingly, taking my hand to lead me away. I send him a scowl.

"I don't want to be anything other than a random citizen so they won't come after us when we leave." I whisper under my breath when I'm sure we're out of listening range. Peeta sighs.

"I wonder if you could talk to someone else about getting your bow, otherwise you won't be able to and we really can't leave without it." I nod in agreement.

"Excuse me, citizens, where are you going? You both have schedules, I assume?" We're interrupted when we turn a corner and a command officer notices us.

"We're on our way to speak with the scheduling department, my wife has some belongings stored in the weapons and training area, but they won't allow us in." Peeta explains.

"Scheduling is that direction." He points, nodding as we follow his direction down a nearby corridor. I squeeze Peeta's hand.

After getting lost and asking for help twice, we make it to a hallway that looks exactly the same as every other one in this district, and slowly open the door. When we aren't met with resistance, we enter.

"Hello?" I say timidly. "Is this scheduling?" I ask when I spot the girl behind the desk.

"Yes, is there a problem?" She inquires coolly. I nod.

"A few of the things I brought in with me from 12 are locked in the training room, but they won't let me in to get them because I'm not scheduled." I explain again.

"Are you on the scout team or part of the force?" She asks, tapping away on her screen.

"No, but they told me I couldn't keep them in our room when we got here." I tell her.

"That's right, no weaponry is to be stored outside the weapons and training rooms." She recites. I roll my eyes.

"The problem is," Peeta begins, "That they won't let her use it. It's just sitting there but she isn't ever scheduled because we're just citizens."

"Well there's nothing I can do, you'll have to talk to my commander." She picks up a grey ring on her thumb and another on her pinky, holding her hand to the side of her head.

"Yeah we have two citizens here with a management issue, 437," she drones, not glancing up from her screen. "I'll set it up, sir." She finishes, taking the rings off again and leaning over to push a couple buttons on a machine identical to the one that gives us our tattoos every morning.

"Your schedules for tomorrow have been revised so you can speak with my commander about this." She explains, finishing with that machine to go back to what she was doing before. "You're dismissed." She tells us, finally glancing up. I scowl but Peeta thanks her and draws me back out of the room.

"I hate this place." I grumble as we try to find our way back to our compartment. He hums in agreement.

 **I know it's short! I'm a little swamped with school right now but I'm trying my best to post even short updates on my stories! They'll be back soon, though!**


	8. Finding peace

**Sorry this is super short again! I'm really trying to get a little time to squeeze in some writing :P**

~0~

Katniss tied back her tangled hair and sat heavily on the edge of the bed. Peeta had gone to bed half an hour ago, while she showered. He grunted as she plopped herself down.

This was a married couples room.

Married couples share a bed.

Peeta and Katniss are "married," and therefore share a bed.

This makes Katniss all kinds of uneasy. Yes, she's slept many nights with him at her side in her tiny Seam bed. But this was somehow different. It wasn't a one time, comfort thing. It was a full time deal, this was THEIR bed.

And that was... fine.

She scooted under the covers a few inches away from his warm body. He rolled over and wrapped his arms around her body. She squeaked as she was pulled against him, but couldn't make herself move away.

"Luff you." He sighed into her hair. She blushed a little, not really knowing why.

She closed her eyes to the dark and tried to go to sleep.

Everything was silent. She'd always had trouble sleeping here, not knowing what was happening back in 12, not knowing anything about anything really, not even what she was doing at each work station her schedule demanded she visit. Just monotonous, routine greyness. Her heart ached to be outside again. To experience the sun, unfiltered air, trees, animals, the sounds of birds in the trees. She rolled restlessly into Peeta's chest, and his arms tightened around her.

"Peeta?" She whispered. "Peeta." She said a bit louder when he didn't respond.

"Hm? What is it, Katniss?"

"Can't sleep."

"You want me to rub your back?" He offered. She rolled onto her stomach, making a vague affirmative noise. He leaned up on his elbows, freeing his right arm from beneath her. He started massaging between her shoulders.

"What's got you worked up tonight?" He asked gently. She dropped her face into the pillow.

"Not knowing. Not being really free." She answered simply."

"Oh. Yeah." He sighed heavily, and not long after, he dropped down into the pillow again snoring softly. She smiled, laying her head beside his and soon drifting off herself.


	9. Preparations

**This chapter is MILDLY SENSUAL, I don't think it's deserving of an M rating by any means, but if you're sensitive to that kind of thing, you can skip from right after he closes the cupboard to the next chapter.**

"What is it, Katniss?" Peeta, who knows me all too well, can tell exactly when I'm hiding something. I look around to make sure we're alone.

"I stole some food. During lunch. I don't think anyone saw it." Peeta's eyebrows shot up.

"Do you know what happens if we get caught?"

"No?" I thought over everything we'd been told upon our arrival, and I can't think of any punishments. Then again, for me, living here was a punishment in and of itself.

"Neither do I, I think everyone here is too ingrained to even consider not following the rules.

Everyone just does what they're told. They're all irritatingly perfect." We sat in silence for a minute.

"I've been stashing things away for awhile too, like a water bottle, I have a couple knives I swiped from the training room, and a backpack. We can start packing actively now." He tells me, and I agree. We finish what we're working on and head back to our room. It's rare that our schedules synch up, but today they did. For the next week, we steal anything we think we might need.

xxxxxxxx

"Mellark, pass me that torch." My working neighbor says to me, and I quietly comply, keeping my response of choice words to myself. He thanks me and I continue working, my irritation at the monotony growing until I can finally leave at the end of the day.

I storm to our room, wishing I could slam the door behind me, but the stupid slider doesn't close fast enough to make noise. I yell in frustration and pace the tiny space, back and forth, until the repetition of even that makes me flop on the bed and shriek into my pillow. It's right then that Peeta enters, and he sits on the bed next to me, eyebrows raised, waiting for me to explain why I'm mad.

"I hate it here! I hate the grey, I hate being underground, I hate the clean air, I hate the scheduling, I hate the people, I hate the meals and rules and - and - I can't use my bow, and you can't bake, and we still don't know anyone here, and you don't even smell like Peeta anymore!" I end, now realizing what's been missing from my roommate? for the last couple of weeks. He shakes his head, smiling wantonly.

"I know, I've missed your woodsy scent for a couple weeks now." He sighs heavily. "Can I kiss you?" He asks. I'm a little surprised at the sudden switch of atmosphere, but comply anyway. He leans forward, resting his weight on his elbows, and presses his lips to mine.

We don't kiss often, sometimes a peck in the mornings, an occasional goodnight smooch, but we hardly ever kiss any other times, and we never make out. I know he's waiting until we have our lives together to have the "what is our relationship" talk with me, and I don't mind putting it off, as I don't know myself. For now, he's just my husband for practicality's sake, and my roommate in basically every other regard. But I'm not always satisfied with the arrangement, and I know he usually isn't. So we kiss our problems away, channel our frustration and anxiety into the contact, and for a while, I feel better, almost happy. Finally, he sighs, trailing his lips down my throat, breathing heavily, and lands one more sweet kiss to my lips before settling down on his back beside me.

"Thank you." He whispers, groping for my hand on the sheets. I hum, scooting closer and trying to not look at his crotch as we lay side by side. I blush as I think about how much I like kissing him. I can feel his eyes on me, which isn't helping either. Eventually, he starts chuckling softly, and I scowl, looking up at him.

"What."

"Nothing, nothing." He smiles, trying to school his features into something more neutral. I don't buy it, and keep scowling at him until he lets his smile back full force.

"I'm sorry, I'm not laughing at you. Well, I am. But not because you did something wrong. I just... I just think you're... you're irony." I'm just as lost as when he started talking. He laughs again. "I mean that you... you're this fierce huntress, you're strong and fearless and then... you see blood or more skin than you're used to and suddenly you get all..." He touches my cheek, "blushy, and quiet." I want to be mad at him for basically saying I can't take it, but the way he says it, I can't deny, and he says it so lovingly that I can't find it in me to be offended.

"I don't mind, for me you're perfect." He tells me after. I don't answer, just curl closer to him.

We lay like that for awhile, before he sighs and tells me he needs to put some things he'd gotten today. I let him go, sitting up a little to watch him. I've already put away the flashlight I'd swiped earlier.

"I found some foil, and I don't know if we'll be able to do anything with it but I think it might come in handy sometime." He packs the folded square into the lining of our new backpack. "I also got us a lighter and some bandages to add to our collection of healing things." He closes the cupboard with our growing collection of personal items. I smile.

"The day to leave is growing closer, I can't wait to get out of here." I say, listing off in my head the things we still need. We can take our bed's blankets, soap and the cup from our bathroom when we leave, and hopefully we have enough space to pack my grey boots as well. We can use everything in our possession now, it's just a matter of packing it.

"Yeah, and so far I don't think we're under any suspicion. But we should make sure we get to all of our shifts on time all the same to make sure we're overlooked as completely average." He reminds me, changing into his sleep pants as he talks. I'm reminded of what he said earlier when I get the urge to look away, so I force myself to keep my eyes open and watch him. I'm sure I'm blushing furiously, but I don't look down and even meet his eyes as he's tying the drawstring.

He's barely containing his laughter when he peels his shirt over his head. I let my gaze run purposefully over his bare chest. He stands next to my side of the bed with a smirk on his lips.

"You're blushing up to your hairline." He tells me frankly. I look at his face, scowling when I see the amusement in his eyes. He reaches for his shirt, and grab it first, tossing it across the room. He raises his eyebrows at me.

"Sleep without it tonight." I order, taking his wrist and tugging it closer to the bed. He looks at me curiously, but climbs into bed anyway.

"Aren't you going to change?" He asks, almost nervously as if he's afraid of making me do something rash. I decide to do the thing anyway.

I wriggle my standard grey pants down my hips, and pull off my grey shirt, tossing both to the floor, turning in my bra and underwear to Peeta, who seemed to have been dreading that exact thing. I now understand why he found this so funny, and I find my lips lifting in a smirk matching the one he wore earlier.

"Who's blushy and quiet now?" I whisper, pulling the covers up over our shoulders, still on my side facing Peeta. He shakes himself a little and rubs his eyes.

"Katniss, I think you forget how bad I already want you -" He starts, but I cut him off.

"I trust you to-"

"No wait," He interrupts me. "Listen for a second. I -" He stops, closing his eyes to gather his thoughts. I don't want to hear what he's about to say, but it probably needs to be said. "I'm wretchedly in love with you. And I'm 16. And you're half naked in our bed and I -" He rolls onto his back, groaning and scrubbing his hand over his face. "You know what, let's just go to sleep." He says finally, leaning out of bed to turn off the light.

While he's facing away from me, I quickly unclasp my bra and drop it too, breathing easier once it's gone. I half-heartedly hope he doesn't notice, but my heart starts pounding when I think about what he'd do if he did notice.

As we settle in and get comfortable, Peeta wraps his arm around my waist as he usually does. It isn't until my back is pressed to his chest that he freezes and I can hear him swallow. I feel myself blush a little but pretend to not notice his reaction. His breathing is heavy and I can feel his sweaty palm on my stomach. After a few minutes, he groans loudly and moves to get up, muttering something under his breath as he locks himself in the bathroom. I roll over, wondering if I'd gone too far. When he returns, flushed and looking mildly irritated, I glance over his face to make sure he's not actually mad at me.

He won't quite make eye contact now, but when he lays down again, he pulls me close and kisses my neck. I make myself comfortable in his arms and I'm almost asleep when I hear his voice, faint and like he's talking to himself. He must think I'm asleep already.

"Fucking shit, control yourself Mellark. It's just skin. It's just skin. Dammit!" I smile, thinking of how the tables have turned. Just to rub it in a little more, I press my backside into his crotch as if I'm just trying to move closer in my sleep, grateful it's dark and he can't see my ridiculous smile. He moans deep in his throat and tightens his arm around me, cursing soundly under his breath. I'll tease him tomorrow about how much I've made him curse tonight.

Of course I wasn't really prepared for the semi-hardness behind me, but it's not as if I've never felt it before, so I do what I'm best at, and just ignore the feeling, hoping it'll go away.


	10. Starting again

**To make the timeline clear:**

 **Katniss and Peeta left D12 during late summer, a few weeks before the rainy season started (Sept/Oct) and got to D13 just in time to avoid it.**

 **They've spent 5 months now in D13, starting to pack about 6 weeks prior to this chapter. At this point, winter(snow) is basically over.**

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Katniss? Katniss, wake up." Peeta shakes me awake and I groan as I roll over. The repetitive motions from my work yesterday make my back ache and I wince.

"Are you okay? You slept late." He sits on the edge of the bed putting his socks on. I nod groggily.

"Yeah, I still have time to get ready I think." I tell him, stifling a yawn.

"You have to hurry."

"Why did you let me sleep so late?" I grumble as I get up and start braiding my hair back.

"I kept thinking you'd wake up, I just got out of the shower and you were still sleeping." I splash water on my face and dress in my work clothes. "Just a few more days in this hole in the ground." He tells me, showing me a calendar he'd been tracking the seasons with. "Snow will start melting by now and we can get out without having to worry about finding water while we get away." I grin.

"We're leaving soon?" I whisper. He nods. I hug him and he squeezes me back. "I can't wait."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"We need to get out of here. Fast." Peeta whispered at me as soon as the door was shut behind him. I jumped up.

"What's the hurry?"

"I overheard my supervisor telling an overseer to keep an eye on me, someone caught me swipe some bandages yesterday. We'll probably be searched in the next day."

"And we have all that stuff we stole."

"Right. So, we leave before they can get us." He reasons. I start packing up the last of our things and he does the same. We have everything that isn't rightfully ours stashed away in our backpacks, all that's left out are the things we use every day. I roll up our compact blankets meant for keeping warmth in without taking up space.

"Everything will be going on low power mode in about 10 minutes, and then we'll be safe to get around without meeting anyone but night guards. We get to the tunnel door first then we decide what to do after that. No complicated planning." He explains and I nod.

"What if we're stopped by a night guard? How do we explain having everything we own on us?" I ask, hooking the bathroom cup on the outside of my pack.

"I'll think of something, just follow my lead." He promises.

"I think that's everything. Low power mode's on now." I declare as the lights dim and the buzz of electricity is quieted. Peeta nods, checking under our bed and in any cabinets for something we've missed.

"Wait, give me a piece of paper." I request, and he hands over one sheet and a pen. I sit at our desk and start writing.

"What are you saying?"

"District 13, we are so grateful for your hospitality, it probably saved our lives, not being out running during the winter months. But this life isn't for us, we can't live underground, it's too much like the mines that take away our loved ones in D12. Please don't come looking for us, we swear on our lives that we won't disclose anything to anyone, should we come across any life in our journey. Sincerely, Peeta and Katniss Mellark. Ps., thanks for believing we're actually married." I read out. Peeta smiled.

"Perfect. They really have no reason to come after us if they know we just didn't like it here." I agree.

"So, let's get out of this place." I grin, leaning up to get a kiss and giving him back his pen.

We sneak out the door, and I'm grateful Peeta's time living in the woods has somewhat quieted his footsteps, even if not by a lot. We check each hallway before working our way back to the main hall that we came in for the first time. There really aren't a lot of guards, only a few here or there that we avoid. Nobody does anything wrong here, so why waste energy watching hallways for criminals that don't exist?

"How does this door work?" I whisper as we try to get the tunnel door open. Peeta finally figures it out and we close it silently behind us, breathing a sigh of relief once it's shut.

"We're out. Do you remember the relief when we first got in here? It's even better to leave." Peeta tells me.

"We're not out yet, now to see if my map works." I mumble as we start following the map I'd written down months ago to freedom. It took both of us to push open the door at the end, but we were both so thrilled that we got to that point that it didn't phase us. But once it was closed, I grabbed Peeta's arm.

"What?"

I don't answer him, instead letting him figure it out as I reach for an arrow and lift my bow. Peeta takes the position behind me, facing the other way with a knife from the worktable we used to frequent.

"Do you hear it now?" He asks quietly. I listen hard. I hear nothing now.

"We're probably fine for now, but keep your guard up. There's all kinds of animals in these woods and my reflexes are rusty." I warn. We move away from the giant camouflaged door. I'm not even sure I could find it again even though I know it's there.

"We need to get high up in a tree, the most dangerous animals probably won't reach us there." He suggests. I smile to myself, the Peeta I left D12 with followed my lead because he was clueless in the woods. Now, he's gotten his bearings.

"Good idea." We set off to walk as long as we can before we're too tired to keep going. It must be after midnight by now, and we're probably far enough away that it would be difficult to find us if D13 did try to track us.

"I was thinking, how would they know we're gone, at least for the first several hours? We have a history of not sticking to schedules, so we might have a bigger headstart than we think." I realize.

"Yeah, you're right. And it might be a whole day or even two before they go into our room." Feeling much better as far as D13 searches go, I point out a good tree and we climb as high as we can, belting ourselves in and using our packs as backrests, however lumpy and uncomfortable they may be. We wish each other goodnight and fall asleep quickly.

My last thoughts are filled with the green I can't yet see and the smells surrounding me. I'm free again.


	11. Downstream

When I wake, I don't move for a few minutes, basking in the morning sun. I finally turn my head.

"Peeta?" I reach over and prod his shoulder a bit. He jolts awake, rubbing his eyes.

"Oh, tree. Right." He gathers his bearings and then looks at me. "Good morning, Katniss. I have to say, I miss the bed." He winces as he stretches.

"We'll get a camp set up soon so we don't have to sleep in trees." I assure him.

"It was a good trade, I'll sleep in a tree any day if it means I have control of my life." He yawns, reaching for his pack and unbuckling his belt.

"Are you ready for a long day of hiking? I'd like to get to a place of relative safety soon."

"And how do we find that?" He asks, threading his belt back through his pants and slinging his pack onto his shoulder.

"I don't... I don't really know." I admit. This seemed a lot easier when I thought about it in the safety of D12 and 13. "Some place near water, where we have enough cover with trees, and where we can build some kind of building."

"What if..." Peeta began, trailing off. I gestured for him to continue. "What if we make a tree house?"

This catches me by surprise, and I open my mouth to respond. He stops me.

"Hear me out for a second. We need something sturdy, and away from animals. We sleep in trees, and, assuming we get the right ones, we can conceal it at least partially from the ground." I think it through.

"You know... That's actually a really good idea." I start planning it out in my head.

"The only difficulty would be building it. I don't have much rope with me, and we'll probably need it for other things."

"We could use a lot of branches to make some kind of a weave," I start experimenting with the thin branches around me, weaving a few together. "And this will only get stronger with time, since they'll fuse together and grow into a sort of solid wall." He nods.

"I have that deconstructed ax, we can use it to make the flooring."

I quickly unfasten my belt from around the tree and put it back on my waist.

"Let's get moving, then!" I grin, climbing down from my perch. He joins me a second later, surprising me again by holding his hand out for me to take. I look at his face, reaching towards him. He smiles at me shyly, which is ridiculous since not two days ago we shared everything, including personal space. But his eyes light up as I take his hand, and we start our long walk towards safety.

"You know what else I miss?" Peeta breaks the comfortable silence.

"What?"

"Tea. I haven't had any in ages, maybe sometime we can make some." He suggests.

"We could. That would be nice." I recall the vast amounts of tea I used to consume back in D12. This makes me think of my father, and I squeeze Peeta's hand reflexively. He squeezes it back, not speaking. By now, we don't need to speak to know what the other is thinking, we operate as a pair.

"I miss them too." He finally says, "My brothers. Prim. Your parents." I smile.

"I wonder how they're doing. Or what they're doing. I wonder if any of them besides my dad know we're still alive."

"Maybe Prim. Maybe my brothers. I doubt my mother would care, but yours may not know."

I stay quiet for a few seconds.

"I want to go back and get them." I say boldly. Peeta stops. I turn to face him, not letting go of his hand. "Not now, I mean later, once we have a place for them to go." He looks relieved.

"That may not be possible, Katniss. I don't know if we'll be able to find our way back, and if we did, we may not be able to get them out. And of course, there's the question of, how do we get in in the first place, we can't just waltz back in after we were 'killed,' even if the peacekeepers didn't believe our scene."

"I know. But... Maybe we can try. After a while, when we're strong and healthy and know the woods well enough to not remember what getting lost is like."

"Speaking of knowing the woods, there's the river, do you want to stop and bathe? It's probably a good idea." I agree.

"I've been spoiled by the District 13 showers." I complain, leaning down to drink some of the water, which is mercifully clear.

"So have I, this will be a harsh reminder of what we've left behind. I wonder if we'd ever be allowed to stay there again."

"I don't see why not, we obviously aren't a threat and if we're working, there's no reason to not let us."

"That's true. Maybe we can ask scouts should we run into them again." He leaves his pack by me and heads downstream to give both of us privacy as we clean up. I'm still somewhat uncomfortable with the idea of being nude out in the open like this, so I bring both our packs with me and head into a more wooded area, leaving an arrow in the dirt pointing to where I am.

Twenty minutes later, I'm feeling refreshed and clean. I head back to where I left Peeta, and find him laying on his back with his knees bent, whistling at the birds in the nearby trees. I pause a minute to watch him.

A bird flies in my direction and he turns his head to watch it, jumping when he sees me.

"Hi, Katniss." He starts to get up. I join him, handing his pack over.

"Do you want to eat something now?" I ask, starting to reach into mine. Peeta nods, opening his as well. We lay out a humble, although filling, meal of what little we'd managed to swipe from the meal room in 13. "I'll have to start hunting again." I remark as we dig into our meat-less meal.

"You ought to teach me, it may come in handy even if I'm not very good at it."

"I'll need to make you a bow, unless you want to learn how to hunt with snares and knives?" I gesture to the large knife sitting by his knee, the one he's become quite good with by this time.

"I could, I mean that may be easier than trying to make another bow. I don't know the first thing about that."

"You'd need a stronger bow than mine, too."

"Which would be more difficult to make?" He inquires.

"Yes, I'd need sturdier materials, and it would be more difficult to work with those. Knives may be your better option."

"Knives it is, then. We should start once we find the next water source. You know... We could just follow this river downstream. It would be nice to have a constant source and it would probably lead to some kind of lake."

"I'm not sure if it doesn't lead us closer to another district, that's the only problem. The closest to District 12 and 13 I _think_ is District 6, which we may have even passed already. I wish we had a map."

"I could have gotten one too..." Peeta facepalmed, running his fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes and concentrated. "Since this river flows away from main Panem, I'm guessing it'll be closest to District 13, if I'm remembering my geography right."

"That sounds right to me. Alright, we'll see where it goes downstream."

We pack up our belongings and start heading downstream, crossing over to the other side when it gets shallower, careful to watch our footing so we don't get the contents of our bags wet. If we are being pursued, it would make more sense to have the river between us and our pursuers.

The rushing water gives us energy, and we both are glad to have it near us. We still rest easier when we're near or under trees, but the feeling of being out in the open is no longer so terrifying.

 **OKAY so a couple notes, according to a few different maps of Panem, D12 and D13 are on the Northwest coast, meaning West Virginia/Maryland/Pennsylvania. D13 is more New York area, where the Seneca (ha ha see what I did there) river is. Our faves are now following that downstream towards Oneida Lake, which (I'm fairly certain) is north of D13 (depends on what map you're looking at). I have and will take some liberty with the landscaping of the area since it's changed a lot since the US became Panem. The rivers aren't the same as they are now, and the lakes will also be different. Please leave a review on your thoughts of their game plan!**


	12. Decisions

**It's been such a long time since I've updated this story! I had the first half written months ago, but couldn't figure out what to write the rest of this chapter. I have so many options for what direction to take the story in, so I'm actually really excited to get your feedback on this one! Some of the big parts of this story have been from y'alls reviews, so I definitely take your suggestions into consideration! Please leave a review and tell me what you think!**

"So if we find a copse of trees, we can start the floor, just make sure it's sturdy enough to support us completely. Use these branches here to make some kind of walls." Peeta grabbed at some different branches as we passed by trees. The rustle of the new leaves gave me the comfort I'd been missing this winter.

"Add moss for insulation, between cracks." I add, startling him.

"Oh, yeah. Moss." He adds. I laugh, grabbing his hand and swinging it between us.

Now that we're far away from pretty much everything, we have a freedom we've never before known. There's nothing really hunting for us now, so we don't have to be constantly on the alert, and it's okay to daydream like this. It's all new to us, and we're happy to be alive for once.

I still have moments where I miss our families, wonder if they're still alive or if our siblings were ever sent to the Games. I wonder if we'll ever make it back there, or if we'll ever enter another district or wonder what lies outside Panem's borders. Everything is a mystery right now, and only time will give me an answer. Peeta's voice breaks me out of my thoughts.

"What happens after we've built our treehouse?" He asks.

"Honestly? I don't know." I tell him. We walk in silence for awhile. "What do you want to happen?" I ask him.

He shrugs.

"I don't know. We've never had to make decisions like this before. I don't know how to decide what I want, just what I need. But I guess that once we have a place to sleep and get used to hunting and gathering our food... we won't really NEED anything else. We could just live out here til we die." I nod in agreement.

"What happens when one of us dies and the other is left?" I ask him quietly. He won't look at me when he answers just as softly.

"I don't want to think about that."

Neither one of us says anything until we go back under cover of the trees. I don't know whether or not the Capitol would search for two teenagers who escaped and have been gone for nearly a year, but my breathing is still easier when we're not walking in plain sight. I feel some tension ease in Peeta as well, so I know he feels the same.

"When do you want to stop walking and start building?" He asks.

"That depends on how far away we want to be. If we can make it outside Panem and see what's there, then it'll probably be nearly impossible to go all the way back to District 12 to get our families. On the other hand, if we stay closer, we're still at risk of being killed or taken back to District 12. Our families may not even be alive by now. We have no idea."

We decide to keep walking until we get out of Panem to see what's there. On all our school maps, the areas outside our borders were just black, and of course the Capitol never wanted to give any idea of what was out there.

The idea of finally finding out what lies outside our borders excites both of us, and we walk with purpose through the trees.

"How will we know we've left Panem?" He asks.

"We'll probably see other districts that aren't Panem or something, maybe we'll know by the oppressive atmosphere disappearing."

"I guess it'll just look different from Panem. I can't wait." He gives my hand another squeeze.

"What'll we do if we find any other people?"

"The first thing will be to see if they speak the same language, I have no idea what people outside speak. But even with the different districts there are different things about the way we talk, so it may be hard to understand what they're saying, even if they do speak our language."

Peeta makes a good point, I hadn't even thought of that. I suppose this is what makes us a good team, both of us have very specific skills and they complement each other well.

"I should draw us a map." Peeta announces. I nod.

"That would make it much easier to get back to District 12. How would you draw it though? We don't have a very good view of the landscape."

"Start with this river. Draw its curves and how wide it is, and any landmarks we find. Climb a tall tree to see more of the area. Just put anything we find on there with distance in walking hours. It's something, even if it's not great."

"That's a good idea. When do you want to start it?" I ask him. He shrugs.

"Now, I guess. I won't be able to work on it at night, so I'll have to do it anytime we come across anything."

"And while we walk, I guess we can start keeping track of other things, like what day it is, when rain season and snow season comes, maybe figure out how to tell what direction we're walking in." I suggest.

"Be smart about where we're going."

"Yeah. Be smart."

"Do you know how to tell what direction we're going?" He asks.

"Not really, but I know it has to do with what direction the sun rises and sets. I just can't remember which is which. But since we hit District 13, I'm guessing we've been going north for awhile. As far as I can remember from our old maps, District 13 is northeast of District 12."

"Alright, so we're heading north-ish. So that means it's around noon right now, and the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Am I right?"

"As far as I know. Let's just keep going north until we find something. I think we'll know when we get there."

"I hope so."

Peeta grabbed my hand again and we walked in silence, hopeful and scared.


End file.
